For a person, who vehemently hated technology, having summers at Yahoo! served as a perfect antidote. Not that I am cured of my Technophobia (Yes, it is a word..go Yahoo! Search it ;)) but I have started respecting techie-toys with each passing day. But no such attitude change towards the techies though! I still think they are the laziest of bums who hate their coding jobs and refuse to admit it. Yes, and they copy the codes from the web too!
*****
The Yahoo! experience has been an awesome breakthrough so far. The learning was immense (and I am sounding like a typical MBA!!) Sales is a tough place to be in when the entire world is sinking in the storm of recession. Ad spends are few and far between and Internet (with its measly 5% penetration in India) is the last media to be considered for advertisements and the first to be thrown out in case of shrinking budgets. But the online media industry is optimistic and unlike print, the only way it is headed is skywards.
For the first few days..the processes, the jargon and everything about this corporate culture left me dumbstruck. I moved around like a zombie having an out-of-body experience (now whats the chances of having that!) But slowly, it all started seeping in; it soon became a way of life.
The people at my workplace are a really wonderful and talented bunch. Very young. Very humorous. And the best part, great foodies! Yay!! Atleast once every week, someone in the team would put their foot down and declare 'nishedh' for the canteen food. Reasons would range from 'Yaar! Aaj paneer nahi khaana' to 'Aaj sirf pizza ki bhook hai'. Never mind the fact that the rest of the team loved their paneer - they are staunch believers of 'All for one and one for all'. And so the purple people not only help run Yahoo! but also contribute immensely to the revenue generation at the nearby Dominoes and Subways. Not that I ever complained! ;)
But then my revelry just doesn't end there! Roaming around in South Mumbai - admiring the Gothic architecture and wishing I had time for the run-down cafes was always a distant dream. Sales helped me do both!! I just didn't admire the grandiose stone buildings, but had jaw-dropping experiences when I found them even more beautiful from inside. What did I do then? I promptly lifted my jaw, appeared to be all sophisticated and pretended to be not at all awe-struck by the grandeur and went on to have meetings with the CEOs/Marketing Heads. Ofcorz! I was no more important than a board-room fixture in many of those meetings. But the fact that I was there, getting to listen to all those successful and established men and women was the most fulfilling part of my internship.
Ofcorz coming to the food part of it - well my boss V is one heck of a foodie. The fact that he is a vegetarian gujju never hampered the my eating-out rendezvous. He took me to swanky places, regular, popular cafes and even run-down Irani hotels adding awesomeness to the experience. From 'Stadium Cafe' next to Churchgate Station to 'Cafe Crystal' at Girgaum Chowpatty. Not to forget that 'ugaach-asach bhook-nahi-tarihi' Shri Krishna's Vadapav, Kothimbir vadi and Sabudana vada. The Goan food at 'How Fishy!' and the birthday treats at Tunga Paradise. Yum!! These past 2 months were indeed a great gastronomic experience!
Now as I wrap up things at my workplace, I feel extremely proud to have spent time with the Yahoos. They have a way of life and they have fun living it! For a fresher like me, this corporate stint was the perfect start. I hope my next workplaces match up to the high standards of expectations I would always carry along post-Yahoo!
P.S: Tomorrow is the final presentation. Pray for me! The best part - my team is taking me and the other intern for an overnight picnic to Alibaug - as a farewell!! Ain't they sweet? the Yahoos!
Cheers - to new friends and good times ahead!
-Rutuja
*****
The Yahoo! experience has been an awesome breakthrough so far. The learning was immense (and I am sounding like a typical MBA!!) Sales is a tough place to be in when the entire world is sinking in the storm of recession. Ad spends are few and far between and Internet (with its measly 5% penetration in India) is the last media to be considered for advertisements and the first to be thrown out in case of shrinking budgets. But the online media industry is optimistic and unlike print, the only way it is headed is skywards.
For the first few days..the processes, the jargon and everything about this corporate culture left me dumbstruck. I moved around like a zombie having an out-of-body experience (now whats the chances of having that!) But slowly, it all started seeping in; it soon became a way of life.
The people at my workplace are a really wonderful and talented bunch. Very young. Very humorous. And the best part, great foodies! Yay!! Atleast once every week, someone in the team would put their foot down and declare 'nishedh' for the canteen food. Reasons would range from 'Yaar! Aaj paneer nahi khaana' to 'Aaj sirf pizza ki bhook hai'. Never mind the fact that the rest of the team loved their paneer - they are staunch believers of 'All for one and one for all'. And so the purple people not only help run Yahoo! but also contribute immensely to the revenue generation at the nearby Dominoes and Subways. Not that I ever complained! ;)
But then my revelry just doesn't end there! Roaming around in South Mumbai - admiring the Gothic architecture and wishing I had time for the run-down cafes was always a distant dream. Sales helped me do both!! I just didn't admire the grandiose stone buildings, but had jaw-dropping experiences when I found them even more beautiful from inside. What did I do then? I promptly lifted my jaw, appeared to be all sophisticated and pretended to be not at all awe-struck by the grandeur and went on to have meetings with the CEOs/Marketing Heads. Ofcorz! I was no more important than a board-room fixture in many of those meetings. But the fact that I was there, getting to listen to all those successful and established men and women was the most fulfilling part of my internship.
Ofcorz coming to the food part of it - well my boss V is one heck of a foodie. The fact that he is a vegetarian gujju never hampered the my eating-out rendezvous. He took me to swanky places, regular, popular cafes and even run-down Irani hotels adding awesomeness to the experience. From 'Stadium Cafe' next to Churchgate Station to 'Cafe Crystal' at Girgaum Chowpatty. Not to forget that 'ugaach-asach bhook-nahi-tarihi' Shri Krishna's Vadapav, Kothimbir vadi and Sabudana vada. The Goan food at 'How Fishy!' and the birthday treats at Tunga Paradise. Yum!! These past 2 months were indeed a great gastronomic experience!
Now as I wrap up things at my workplace, I feel extremely proud to have spent time with the Yahoos. They have a way of life and they have fun living it! For a fresher like me, this corporate stint was the perfect start. I hope my next workplaces match up to the high standards of expectations I would always carry along post-Yahoo!
P.S: Tomorrow is the final presentation. Pray for me! The best part - my team is taking me and the other intern for an overnight picnic to Alibaug - as a farewell!! Ain't they sweet? the Yahoos!
Cheers - to new friends and good times ahead!
-Rutuja
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